Public Transit Vocabulary

The extent to which facilities are free of barriers and usable by mobile handicapped people.

A

A motor vehicle for transporting large numbers of people along roads.

B

A road or section of road dedicated to public buses. May contain tracks or grooves to restrict other traffic.

B

An individually controlled rail passenger vehicle operating in mixed street traffic and propelled by gripping a continuously moving cable located in an underground slot between the rails.

C

A long-distance or privately hired bus.

C

A passenger railroad service that operates within metropolitan areas on trackage that usually is part of the general railroad system.

C

The required payment for a ride on a public transportation vehicle.

F

A ship used to transport people, smaller vehicles and goods from one port to another, usually on a regular schedule.

F

An enclosed car attached to a cable mechanically lifted up the side of a mountain.

G

A transit system that generally serves one urban area, using high speed, electrically powered passenger rail cars operating in trains on exclusive rights of way, without grade crossings and with high platforms.

H

A privately owned vehicle (typically rather small) operated on a fixed route, but not usually on a fixed schedule, and for a low fare.

J

A bus that can lower its body or entrance door to facilitate boarding by the elderly or people with disabilities.

K

A transit system consisting of vehicles supported and guided by a single guideway (rail or beam), usually elevated.

M

Forms of transit services that are more flexible and personalized than conventional fixed-route, fixed-schedule service, and which may only be available to a specific group, e.g., the elderly, employees of a company, or residents of a neighborhood.

P

A theoretical concept for an automated guideway transit system that would operate small units (2 to 6 passengers) under computer control over an elaborate system of guideways.

P

A designated, specified path to which a transit unit is assigned. Frequently identified by an alphanumeric designation.

R

An off-street facility where passengers wait for, board, alight from or transfer between transit units. May have a waiting room and separate boarding and alighting platforms, and may offer ticket sales, information, fare collection or other services.

S

A place where passengers wait for, board or alight from, or transfer between transit units, usually identified by a sign and distinctive curb or pavement markings. May provide shelter, seating, service information or a combination of these.

S

A light rail vehicle, usually a single car, but also attached together, operating on city streets.

S

An underground rapid rail transit system.

S

A vehicle that may be hired for single journeys by members of the public, generally driven by someone who leases the vehicle from the company that owns it.

T

A mechanical vehicle carrying a large number of passengers and/or freight along a purpose-built track or path.

T

An instrument issued to passengers conferring the right (for free or for a fee) to change from one transit unit or mode to another.

T

A method of transit pricing based on the geographical partitioning of the service area, with fares being determined by the distance travelled and the number of partitions traversed.

Z